Bible Study Guides – Biblical Faith

December 4, 2011 – December 10, 2011

Key Text

“For we walk by faith, not by sight.” II Corinthians 5:7.

Study Help: Steps to Christ, 67–75; Testimonies, vol. 1, 303–310.

Introduction

“Hold the faith with a firm hand, but be sure that you hold it in righteousness.” The Signs of the Times, December 13, 1899.

1 LAMBS OF GOD

  • What should we all realize who accept Christ as our Saviour? Hebrews 12:1–3.

Note: “Oh, how often we yield to temptation because we do not keep our eye upon Jesus! Our faith is not continuous because, through self-indulgence, we sin, and then we cannot endure ‘as seeing Him who is invisible’ [Hebrews 11:27].” Testimonies, vol. 5, 652.

“Worldly attractions will be presented to draw your attention from the Lord Jesus; but laying aside every weight and the sin that so easily besets, press on toward the heavenly goal, showing to the world, to angels, and to men that the hope of seeing the face of God is worth all the effort and the sacrifice that the attainment of the hope demands.” The Review and Herald, December 29, 1910.

  • How can we grow in our Christian walk? I Peter 2:1–3.
  • What other means does God use to help us grow in Christ? Hebrews 12:4–12.

Note: “The Lord permits trials to come upon us in order that we may make earnest, heartfelt intercession. Trial brings us to God, and leads us to form a closer connection with Christ our Saviour. Trial forces us to do as the word of God directs.” The Signs of the Times, August 20, 1896.

2 WHEN TRIALS COME

  • What are we to realize when faced with difficulties? James 1:2–4; Psalm 84:11.

Note: “The Word does not say that we are to count it all joy when we fall under temptation, but when we fall into temptation. It is not necessary to fall under temptation, for temptation comes upon us for the trying of our faith. And the trying of our faith worketh patience, not fretfulness and murmuring. If we put our trust in Jesus, He will keep us at all times, and will be our strength and shield. We are to learn valuable lessons from our trials. …

“Many become the sport of the enemy, because when temptations comes, they do not rest in Jesus, but worry themselves out of His arms, and in perplexity lose all their faith and courage. They do not remember that Jesus has helped them out of difficulties in the past, that His grace is sufficient for the daily trials, and that He can help in the present trouble. We make failures in our little, daily difficulties, and allow them to irritate and vex us; we fall under them, and so make stumbling blocks for ourselves and others. But blessings of the greatest importance are to result from the patient endurance of these daily vexations; for we are to gain strength to bear greater difficulties. Satan will press upon us the most severe temptations, and we must learn to come to God in any and every emergency, as a child would come to its parents.” The Review and Herald, May 19, 1891.

  • What assurances does God offer as we exercise faith in Him? Ephesians 6:14–16.

Note: “We are not to be like the man who said, ‘I have prayed and prayed, but I do not receive.’ A companion said to him, ‘Let us pray together then, and claim the promise of God.’ So they bowed in prayer; but when they rose from their knees, the man said, ‘I don’t feel any different, and I didn’t expect I should.’ This is the way that many present themselves before God; they would be surprised if God should answer their prayers. They do not expect the Lord to answer their prayers, or think that the Lord will hear them, and their petitions are in vain; for they go away as they came.” The Review and Herald, May 19, 1891.

3 ABIDING IN CHRIST

  • How does Christ depict His relationship with His children? John 15:1–5; I John 3:3.

Note: “[John 15:5, 4 quoted.] In this vine is all spiritual life. From Christ’s fullness alone can we obtain nourishment unto eternal life. The vine stock is unseen; but the branches—members of His body—are visible. The scion which before was leafless and apparently lifeless, becomes, when grafted into the vine, a partaker of its life and fatness. Fiber by fiber, and vein by vein, the graft adheres to the parent stock, till the life-giving sap flows to the adopted member, causing it to bud, and blossom, and bear fruit.

“The scion becomes a part of the living vine by forming a perfect union with it. Thus it is with the sinner. By repentance and faith, he becomes connected with Jesus Christ, and lives in him. This connection joins soul to soul—the finite with the infinite. But, contrary to nature, the branch which has been united with the true vine brings forth, not fruit of its own kind, but the fruit of the vine of which it has become a part. The Spirit of Christ, flowing into the hearts of all who are indeed united with Him, makes them partakers of the divine nature. They become pure, even as He is pure.” The Review and Herald, September 20, 1881.

“The life-giving power of the Holy Spirit, proceeding from the Saviour, pervades the soul, renews the motives and affections, and brings even the thoughts into obedience to the will of God, enabling the receiver to bear the precious fruit of holy deeds. …

“If the follower of Christ would grow up ‘unto a perfect man, unto the measure of the stature of the fullness of Christ’ (Ephesians 4:13), he must eat of the bread of life and drink of the water of salvation. He must watch and pray and work, in all things giving heed to the instructions of God in His word.” The Acts of the Apostles, 284, 285.

  • What is one of the wonderful results of abiding in Christ? II Corinthians 1:3, 4.

Note: “Christ is represented by the vine that imparts the nourishment, the vitality, the life, the spirit, the power, that the branch can bear fruit, and then when affliction and disappointment come, you are to show altogether a different character of fruit than the world. There is the evidence that you are connected with Jesus Christ, and that there is a power that sustains you in all your afflictions and disappointments and trials; and this power and this grace sweetens every affliction.” Reflecting Christ, 355.

4 THE FRUITS OF FAITH

  • What are we to add to our faith, and what fruit will be shown? II Peter 1:3–9; Galatians 5:22, 23.

Note: “The soul that loves God, rises above the fog of doubt; he gains a bright, broad, deep, living experience, and becomes meek and Christlike. His soul is committed to God, hid with Christ in God. He will be able to stand the test of neglect, of abuse and contempt, because his Saviour has suffered all this. He will not become fretful and discouraged when difficulties press him, because Jesus did not fail or become discouraged. Every true Christian will be strong, not in the strength and merit of his good works, but in the righteousness of Christ, which through faith is imputed unto him. It is a great thing to be meek and lowly in heart, to be pure and undefiled, as was the Prince of heaven when He walked among men.” The Review and Herald, December 3, 1889.

  • If our character is not becoming Christlike as it should be, what is the basic problem? II Peter 1:10, 11; Hebrews 3:12. If we find ourselves in this predicament, what should be the cry of our heart? Mark 9:24.

Note: “When the tempests of temptation gather, and the fierce lightnings flash, and the waves sweep over us, we battle with the storm alone, forgetting that there is One who can help us. We trust to our own strength till our hope is lost, and we are ready to perish. Then we remember Jesus, and if we call upon Him to save us, we shall not cry in vain. Though He sorrowfully reproves our unbelief and self-confidence, He never fails to give us the help we need.” The Desire of Ages, 336.

“It is faith that connects us with heaven, and brings us strength for coping with the powers of darkness. In Christ, God has provided means for subduing every sinful trait, and resisting every temptation, however strong. But many feel that they lack faith, and therefore they remain away from Christ. Let these souls, in their helpless unworthiness, cast themselves upon the mercy of their compassionate Saviour. Look not to self, but to Christ. He who healed the sick and cast out demons when He walked among men is the same mighty Redeemer today. Faith comes by the word of God. Then grasp His promise, ‘Him that cometh to Me I will in no wise cast out.’ John 6:37. Cast yourself at His feet with the cry, ‘Lord, I believe; help Thou mine unbelief’ [Mark 9:24]. You can never perish while you do this—never.” Ibid., 429 (author’s italics).

5 LIVING BY FAITH

  • Why is it that a proud person can never be truly faithful? Habakkuk 2:4.

Note: “Advancement in Christian experience is characterized by increasing humility, as the result of increasing knowledge. Everyone who is united to Christ will depart from all iniquity. … When Christ is cherished in the heart, His likeness will be revealed in the life. Humility will reign where pride was once predominant. Submission, meekness, patience, will soften down the rugged features of a naturally perverse, impetuous disposition. Love to Jesus will be manifested in love to His people. It is not fitful, not spasmodic, but calm and deep and strong. The life of the Christian will be divested of all pretense, free from all affectation, artifice, and falsehood. It is earnest, true, sublime. Christ speaks in every word. He is seen in every deed. The life is radiant with the light of an indwelling Saviour. In converse with God and in happy contemplation of heavenly things the soul is preparing for heaven and laboring to gather other souls into the fold of Christ. Our Saviour is able and willing to do for us more than we can ask or even think.” Testimonies, vol. 5, 49, 50.

  • How can we follow the Lord even when circumstances point against us? II Corinthians 4:17, 18; 5:7.

Note: “Faith looks beyond the difficulties, and lays hold of the unseen, even Omnipotence, therefore it cannot be baffled. Faith is the clasping of the hand of Christ in every emergency.” The Faith I Live By, 100.

PERSONAL REVIEW QUESTIONS

1 What may be clouding my spiritual eyesight as I seek to look to Jesus?

2 How can I improve in my exercise of faith during trials and difficulties?

3 How can I promote the life-giving sap to flow more freely from Christ to me?

4 The standard of Christian virtue is high—yet, how are we encouraged along the way?

5 What occurs in the soul who keeps in close touch with God at the foot of the cross?

© 2005 Reformation Herald Publishing Association, Roanoke, Virginia. Reprinted by permission.